John m



of Paris, in the Republic of France, have in T 0. all wh'omz't may concern:

UNITED STATES PATENT. OFFICE.

'Jonn M. Lewis, F PARIS, FRANCE.

EXPLOSIVE COMPOUND.

SPEC IFIG ATION forming part of Letters Patent No..242,783, dated June 14, 1881. Application filed March 1, 1881. (No specimens.) Patented in Belgium November 13, 188 0.

' Beit known that I, J OHN MALCOLM LEWIN,

I'vented a certain new and useful Improvement 'trine.

- incorporated in such mass. i

in Explosive Compounds for Blasti ug and oth er Purposes, of which invention the following specification is a full description.

' This invention relates to ljllfllitililfis of 60111-.

positions which contain nitio-glycerine in corn.- hination with other materials; and it consists in an'improvedcomposition called forcite.

This composition is produced by incorporating with nitro-glycerine.cellulose and niter or saltpeter, the result b ing a compact and plastic inass. Under some circinnstances a large portion of the cellulosecan be replaced by dex- Heretot'orenitro g1 yeeri me has been rod need to a gelatinous mass bydissolving; nil-cotton. or intro-cellulose therein, and niter has been I In the present invention neither gun-cotton norother form of nitro-cellulose is required, but the cellulose tion.

In order to carry the invention into eifect, cotton or other form of cellulose is treated alternately with alkalies and acids. as in the cleaning ot'paper-stock, or in any ordinary or suitable way, in order to remove foreign materials and leave pure cellulose. This is then reduced to [powder hya picker or grindingcyliuder, and is subjected in a close vessel to the action of high-pressure steam until the re- -tion takes place by which the cellulose is converted into a gelatinous mass. At this moment the operation is stopped, the gelatinous ma'ss obtained (which can be preserved indefinitely under water) is allowed to cool, andis then dissolved in or thoroughly and uni formly incorporated with nitro-glycerine, the result being a sort of jelly. The solution or incorporation is effected by the aid of heat. A temperature of 40 centigrade is suitable, and can easily be obtained by a water-hath in which the water is heated to, say, 90 centigrade. N iter is incorporated with the nitroglycerine and gelatinized cotton described'to form the new explosive-forcite.

is used in an unnitrated condiformot' powder. Forcite thus prepared is a plastic mass having power of nitro-glycerine, and being attended 'iu its making, carrying. and keeping with less danger than explosive compounds before known, andeveu than blasting or-mining powder, properly called. It hasthe ree zplodin g when confined or charged in a drillhole, as well by the action of special primers or caps as by ordinary fuses,aud.of burning without explosion in the open air. Its manufacture is less costlythan other compositions of nitro-gly-ceriue. The nitro glycerine is so perfectly united with the other materials that itis not separated by sulphuric ether or alcohol,

' JOHN MALCOLM Lewis.

Witnesses: I

PAnLOLEIs,

MARnELEr.

- I The proportions may vary. Oneof the bestinarkable-and most advantageous property of 75. and'that water has no action upon it. The p 

